Statement from HEFCE
The Government has asked us to consider what support may be required for subjects in order to avoid undesirable reductions in the scale of provision. We use a mixture of quantitative and qualitative evidence to forecast and monitor the availability of subjects on a regular basis. Where we consider there to be significant evidence of risk to the future availability of a subject, alongside evidence of the strategic importance of this subject, there may be a need for intervention.
Our new policy takes account of the broad changes in the funding of higher education. We are currently inviting views on this approach to SIVS through our consultation on teaching funding. The deadline for responses is 25 May 2012. The Board paper below also sets out in more detail our new policy in this area.
Full details on HEFCE website
Professor Mike Smith (1945-2011)
We are sad to report that Professor Mike Smith, Former Vice-Chair of UKCASA died on 1 October 2011. Professor Smith, served as UKCASA’s first elected Vice-Chair from 2004 until 2006. He was also a former Chair of the Standing Conference of Heads of European Studies (SCHES) and Pro-Vice Chancellor at Glasgow Caledonian University.
Eqiality and diversity training pack/ maternity leave and the REF
HEFCE funds training resources to improve equality and diversity among researchers
A unique pack of training resources addressing equality and diversity in research staff careers has been published through the HEFCE-funded Every Researcher Counts project.
http://www.hefce.ac.uk/news/hefce/2011/vitae.htm
Maternity leave in the REF
Early decision on the arrangements for taking account of maternity leave in the REF.
REF consultation deadline, 5 October 2011
Message from Susan Hodgett
Those who attended the Area Studies meeting found it very useful. May I just remind you that the last date for responses on the REF consultation is this week 5th October and need to be made online at http://www.hefce.ac.uk/research/ref/pubs/2011/03_11/consult/
AGM, 14 June, 2011, London
Reminder:The meeting (next Tues.) will discuss with the British Academy the future of Area Studies so please send a representative if you can. If your association has not already replied that you are attending, and you now wish to send a representative, please let me know for catering purposes.
The AGM on Tuesday 14th June will be held at 10am in the Mall Room, The British Academy, 10 Carlton House Terrace, London SW1Y 5AH, adjacent to the Duke of York steps leading to the Mall. Our speaker will be Professor Dame Helen Wallace: Foreign Secretary-elect, The British Academy, and Chair of the Political Studies Section
Susan Hodgett
Call for Contributions: American Studies in the UK, 2000-2010
The British Association for American Studies, in association with the Fulbright Commission, is embarking on an important new research project tracing the development of American Studies in the UK between 2000 and 2010. The project aims to produce a contemporary census document and a historical resource for future scholars.
Alongside statistical data, the report will also include commentary and case studies, involving a wide range of voices and experiences. Contributions are therefore invited from all sections of the American Studies community in the UK, including researchers, lecturers, administrators, teachers and students. Contributors are asked to respond to the central question: In what ways did American Studies in the UK change between 2000 and 2010?
Submissions, from individuals or institutions, may wish to address, amongst other matters, the following issues:
- The impact, on American Studies in the UK, of the decade’s political events, including 9/11, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the presidencies of Clinton, Bush and Obama.
- Structural changes in higher education, such as tuition fees, and the priorities of research councils and other funding bodies.
- The development of new research themes and disciplinary models.
- The emergence of new research centres and resources.
- Changes in institutional or departmental focus.
- Experience of international exchange and outreach projects.
- Key publications in the period.
Contributions, either informal notes or more structured text, should total no more than 1000 words. Submissions may be quoted or excerpted (with due credit) in the final report. Please send to Richard Martin at rgmartin81@yahoo.co.uk by 14 October 2011.
The final report will be presented at the BAAS Annual Conference in Manchester in April 2012, and will be published as an open-access document on the BAAS website.
HEFCE report on strategic and vulnerable subjects
Members might like to have a look at the HEFCE report http://www.hefce.ac.uk/news/hefce/2011/sivs.htm which includes information on Language Based Area Studies.
HEFCE announce REF timetable
The Research Excellence Framework timetable is now on the HEFCE website.
UKCASA meeting, 16 February, London
The next meeting of UKCASA will take place at the University of London on 16 February, at 5pm, in the Macmillan Hall, Senate House (South Block), London (nearest underground Russell Square). The guest speaker will be Professor Peter Gatrell (Manchester University) Chair of the REF Panel 27 Area Studies.
Campaign to save the Subject Centres
As you may know, on the 10th of November 2010 the HEA Board accepted the HEA
executive’s proposal to disband the Subject Centres, which are scheduled to
be wound up after August 2011. Over 1000 people have now signed a petition
against that decision, first through a letter published in the THE (see
http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=414397)
and subsequently through an online petition at
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/heasubjectcentres/
Opposition to the closure of the subject centres continues to grow, and an Early Day Motion calling upon the HEA to reverse its decision has now been tabled by Paul Farrelly, MP. You can view the EDM, and see a list of MPs
who have signed it at:
http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=42197&SESSION=905
Please sign the petition if you have not already done so, adding your
affiliation and a comment if possible. Most important, if your MP has not
signed the EDM, please lobby him or her to sign EDM 1185 on ‘UK University
Teaching and the Role of the Subject Centres’. If you do not know who your
MP is, you can find out at:
http://www.theyworkforyou.com/mp/
If you need a briefing paper for your MP, you can find one via the Facebook
page for the ‘Save Our Subject Centres’ campaign at:
